It's All In The Timing
by Grining Prey
Summary: When a shinigami comes in contact with a human who has abnormal reiatsu they have no choice but to kill the body and guide their soul back to the Seriate for proper training. To ignore this law would be suicide Rukia thought as she aproached Ichigo.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Bleach

**It's All In The Timing**

Rukia sheathed her Zanpakto as the Hollow's remains evaporated into the air, leaving nothing behind. It had been easier than she thought it would be, the boy had provide and exhalent distraction while she beheaded the monster from behind. But now she had a problem - the boy. The Hollow had specifically said "I found you," when he caught sight of the carrot top. Sparing a glance Rukia noticed that he was distracted by trying to find his sister's pulse, mumbling things like for her not to die on him. Turning her attention back to the matter at hand. A human with potent enough reiatsu was a danger, not only to himself but everyone around him and there was only one way to solve the problem - konso. When a shinigami came in contact with a human with abnormal reiatsu they had no choice but to kill the body and guide their soul back to the Seriate for proper training. Rukia sighed, it was just her luck - after all nothing like this ever happened. Drawing her blade Rukia whished to get it over with quickly, she was not pleased with the thought of killing an innocent but to disobey orders would be suicide.

Ichigo had felt his heart stop when he had found the steady pulse of blood flowing in Karen's veins. Pulling her body close to his Ichigo cried with relief. After a minute he had a bad felling, like something was telling him to move - so he did. Out of pure instinct Ichigo had tossed Karen, as lightly as he could, to the side, shifting from his original position as he did so. Feeling something icy-cold come in contact with his skin Ichigo numbly looked down to find a blade sticking from his chest - it was red with his blood. Feeling the blade move Ichigo wanted to scream at the pain but found it impossible to even utter a sound other than a chocking gasp. Collapsing face first Ichigo began to convulsed as he tilted his head to try and see what was happening. Above him stood the Shinigami with her blade held high, probably ready to behead him, but then something else happened; A new figure, that Ichigo couldn't really make out, appeared and shouted something tackling the shinigami. Ichigo lost consciousness soon after due to the loss of blood and pain.

Rukia gasped as the hand around her throat tightened it's grip. She was pinned up against the side of a nearby house being held up off the ground chocking to death by a man dressed similar to a shinigami captain would dress - only his cape was tide around his bicep. His name was Kurosaki Isshin, the father of Kurosaki Ichigo - though the name wouldn't have meant anything to Rukia, Isshin had been before her time.

Isshin had been awoken by the hollow destroying his house, though he watched everything from the shadows, his current form hindering him from helping his daughter. Maybe he would have been provoked into helping but he knew about the Shinigami in his house - feeling her presence when he had woke up. So he had waited patiently, watching as everything had unfolded, but when that Shinigami had drawn her sword against Ichigo Isshin snapped. A fire had been re-awoken inside him bringing with it all his old skills and powers. So in his shinigami uniform he appeared on the scene, "Step away from my son!" He shouted as he tackled the shinigami, wrapping his hand around her throat and pinning her into a wall.

"Leave," Isshin growled as he released the girls throat. And Rukia did just that disappearing with a shunpo. Not giving it a second thought Isshin rushed back to Ichigo and kneeled down at his side only to find something most displeasing.

* * *

Ichigo groaned as he opened his eyes, his head hurt. Laying on his back Ichigo watched the cloudless blue sky above him, but that left him a little confused. Hadn't he fallen on his face and hadn't it been the middle of the night? Sitting up Ichigo began to look around to gather his bearing, then he noticed something - he was sitting on what appeared to be a skyscraper. More importantly though was the fact that he was sitting on the SIDE of a skyscraper without succumbing to gravity. Ichigo began to stand slowly, afraid that to much movement may send him plummeting to the ground. Out of curiosity Ichigo looked down the length of the building to find said ground but what meet his sight was something most unpleasing - there was no ground, just an endless stretch of skyscraper.

Feeling his heart jump up into his throat Ichigo began to wonder just how he ended up in this queer world. "This is your mind king." Ichigo turned sharply to where the voice had come from. Finding the speaker Ichigo was surprised at what he had found. The speaker was - him. Only this Ichigo's skin was a white as a sheet of paper as was his hair and his lips where black. But that's not all his sclera's where pitch black and his iris's where a sickly looking yellow. Opening his mouth and laughing he reveled a blue tongue. "What's the matter king?" The new Ichigo vanished from sight, reappearing behind the original Ichigo in the blink of an eye. With his hand gripping the carrot top's shoulder the albino leaned in close to Ichigo's ear with a devilish smirk on his features, "You look like you've seen a ghost!"

* * *

Isshin brought up his blade to block another strike made by a clawed hand. Pushing the offender back, he try to regain his bearings. He was a little on edge after watching his own son's soul shoot out of his body a being transforming into a hollow. Ichigo now stood in front of him, his face completely obscured by a mask that was similar to a human's skull. Starting at the back of the mask four black spike like designs stretched across it: two of them stopping by the forehead, and the other two stretching past his eyes and teeth, going past his chin and disappearing under his shirt. Located near his temples two short lumps appeared and they where growing with every passing moment. His right arm was now as white as the new Ichigo's and at the wrist a small tuft of orange fur, the fingers had been elongated into evil looking sharp pointed claws.

Opening his mouth Ichigo reveled the fact that he had two set's of teeth, a pair hidden behind the mask. Charging Isshin with his mouth agape Ichigo was doing exactly what his instincts told him to do: devour souls.

* * *

"If this is my mind then who are you?" Ichigo asked dumbfounded. Releasing the carrot top's shoulder the new Ichigo stuck his hand's into his pockets, "Why I AM you." Walking past Ichigo the albino stared off into the distance appearing to ignore the teen.

"But you can't be me." Ichigo stated. Smirking the albino continued to stare off into the distance, "I suppose that's true." Turning to Ichigo the albino smirked, "I am you but at the same time." He removed his shirt revealing a large circular hole in the middle of his chest. "But at the same time I'm not you."

Ichigo's eyes' widened, the hole was exactly like the holes that had been on those hollow's that he had seen earlier today. "But how is that possible? I-I don't understand? If you're a hollow than what are you doing inside my head? And why do you look like me?"

"You don't get it do you?" The albino shook his head disapprovingly. "You're dead."

* * *

Isshin didn't know how much more of this he could take. He was already getting worn out but Ichigo seemed to be getting stronger by every passing moment. And on top of that Isshin just couldn't find it within himself to kill Ichigo. No matter what his body looked like, Isshin knew that his son was still inside there some where. Blocking another swipe made by clawed hand Isshin felt his muscles protest as he jumped away from Ichigo's left hand, which had transformed as well. Isshin was beginning to wonder just how much longer he could last when, as if on cue, Isshin's poor condition finally caught up with him - tripping over his own feet trying to put some more distance between himself and Ichigo.

Falling flat on his back Isshin knew that this was it - unless by some miracle he was saved. Thankfully for Isshin though somebody up their was looking out for him. So when Ichigo came in ready to deliver the final blow it was no surprise when a bowl hat wearing man with sandals and a cane appeared in-between the two combatants. "I'll take it from here Isshin-kun," Kisuke told the stunned man behind him.

* * *

"Dead?" Ichigo repeated numbly. "I'm - dead?"

The albino sneered, "What have you got something in your ear?" But Ichigo didn't reply, he was to dumbstruck at the newly discovered fact. "Though I suppose it's not a total shame…after all with you gone I'll be the one in charge." The albino smiled at the thought of this. "What do you mean?" Ichigo asked curiously.

"Oh well with you dead I be able to take full control of your body." The albino seemed to think about something. "It's a shame you won't be alive to see it though, I'm sure it will be a magnificent sight when I devour your family." He chuckled darkly at the though of this.

"What?!" Ichigo cried. "I won't let you lay a finger on them!" Tackling the albino to the ground Ichigo grabbed him by the front of his shirt and sneered at his impassive face. "Oh yeah and what will you do? You're dead remember." Ichigo's shoulders slump and his grip on the front of the hollow's shirt loosened. What would he do, he thought. Just like the albino had pointed out, he was dead. But then it dawned on Ichigo. Tightening his grip Ichigo pulled the hollow closer. "You're lying." The albino cocked his eyebrow at this. "You said so yourself that this was my mind. And if I'm alive here than that means that I'm alive on the outside too!"

The hollow smirked, "Your not stupid after all." Then he easily threw Ichigo off of him. "So you figured it out huh? Well no matter its just a minor annoyance, after all you're nothing compared to me." The hollow slowly began to approach the fuming Ichigo.

What was he suppose to do now? He was no match for that monster, it had tossed him like a rag doll. It wasn't fair, Ichigo decided. This was his mind not that damned hollow's. But Ichigo realized something - This WAS his mind. "What are you smirking at king?" The hollow added that last part sarcastically.

Standing up Ichigo steeled his resolve, "Ever since I've arrived you've called me 'king,' why?" The hollow was the one to sneer this time, "You're in control of your body that makes you king. But soon I'll take that crown from your corpse, actually I'm in the process of stealing it at this very moment."

"So I'm king you say," This time it was Ichigo who was smirking, leaving the hollow with a questioning look. "If I'm the king that that makes this my kingdom and that means I rule here." Reiatsu began to fly wildly around Ichigo's body lashing out against anything and everything, it was like a wild storm and Ichigo was the center of it all. This caused the albino's eye's to widen - where had this power come from? He questioned himself. There was no way Ichigo was creating this stuff by himself, but what other explanation was there? And then all of the sudden Ichigo vanished from sight, much like the hollow had done earlier. Feeling a hand grab his shoulder, the hollow's eyes widened as he turned his head to get a good look. Behind him stood Ichigo holding what appeared to be a blade made out of pure reiatsu.

With an impassive look on his face Ichigo brought the blade close to the hollow's throat and leaned in closer to his ear. "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost."

* * *

Kisuke stood at ready with his blade unsheathed from it's cane disguise. Ichigo hadn't made a move for the past ten minutes - in fact the only thing betraying the fact that he had died on his feet was that his chest was slowly but steadily moving up and down. And then it happened, his white skin began to crack and break into little fragments, completely shattering into nothing when the pieces hit the ground. The last thing to go was his mask which had fully developed a pair for long forward pointing horns. And when that finally fell they Ichigo appeared to have returned to normal - swaying back and forth before finally collapsing. Sheathing his blade Kisuke walked to the unconscious teen while Isshin moved as quickly as his body would let him.

When they both reached Ichigo however they froze startled at what they saw. Starting up near his right ear and ending at the middle of his chin was the bottom of a human shaped jaw, with a full set of teeth. Walking over to Ichigo Kisuke pulled up his shirt, fearing the worst. And he was right to worry for right in the middle of Ichigo's chest was a large circular hole.

* * *

Number 11 has been launched hope you all enjoyed the first chapter. The idea came to me while I was watching the first Bleach episode and I thougt "What if Rukia had killed that hollow?" And then it snowballed from there. Reviews are apreciated, as is helpful critisism(Spelling and what not). Flamers will be laughed at and critizied....a lot.

This is Grining Prey Signing Out.


	2. Done

Alright I'm done.

Serious lack of enthusiasm, and a case of "who gives a fuck?" Has left me wondering, why? Why did I become an Author? Was it because I enjoyed writing? Was it because I thought it would be fun? Maybe I just wanted to get all these ideas out of my head and onto some paper, and when I heard about fan fiction I thought, what a great idea. But for fucks sake I can tell you right fucking now that I didn't become an Author so some nameless bitch, who doesn't even have the balls to give me a way to reply, could sprout some nonsense shit about my stories. But its not just the flamers, it's the complete and total dead end I've hit with all of my stories. I've been forcing the chapters for a while now and I just can't keep this up.

I'm tired, tired of this shit. So I would really like to apologies to anyone who actually liked my stories. I'm sorry, not that I'm quitting, but because I let the flamers get to me and because I let you guys down. So I propose this to anyone who reads this notice; take a story, any story, and make it into what you thought it should've been or try and continue the story the way you thought it would go. Its my final gift to anyone who wants it. If any of you take my offer please PM me, I'll supply you with my story plots and some of the future chapters I had already typed out, and I would really love to see your take on a story.

May not sound very manly, and I know it will be bait for the flamers, but I can actually see the tears clouding my vision. Its painful, actually more painful that I thought it would be. It actually feels like a friend, a close friend passed away, and I'm mourning his death. But I guess its painful to do what must be done. If you had a dead arm attached to your shoulder what would you do? Would you grit your teeth and cut it off? Or would you bear with it, and let it poison the rest of your body?

When I had fist started I remember making a promise to all of my readers that I would never abandon my stories, but I guess that's a promise I just can't keep. And maybe this is just a case of the "woe is me's" Maybe in a week or a month I'll come crawling looking to reattach my "dead arm." But I doubt it.

Ha how ironic, even as I write my own 'resignation,' I can't help but to think that some of the stuff I've said would've made a great quote for one of my stories.

Heh just read a positive review for my last chapter, makes this even harder to say but, I think most of you know what's coming.

For the last time ever,

Forever Grining 'til The End  
This Is Grining Prey Signing out.

_When people share experiences together, and then they must part, there is a feeling of sadness. Saying goodbye to people that we feel connected to is an occasion of somber reflection. It is hard to imagine our lives without them, and yet we have no choice but to go on. It is comforting to know that for however long you will be separated that you will always be in each other's hearts. It is also an opportunity to be more present to others in your life and to look for opportunities to form new friendships. _


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